NFL Team Execs Still Unsure Of Likelihood For 18-Game Schedule, Shorter Preseason

No one around the NFL "seems to agree on a solution to the annual disenchantment with the four-game preseason schedule," according to Randy Covitz of the K.C. STAR. Chiefs Chair & CEO Clark Hunt said, "There are two sides to the coin. For a team like the Chiefs who have gone through a coaching change, having four games is very valuable for the players and the coaches. ... Long term, the move to having more regular-season games and fewer preseason games makes sense from a holistic standpoint, but I can’t predict when that will happen" (K.C. STAR, 8/29). In DC, Mark Maske cites an NFL team owner as saying that he "continues to regard an 18-game season as a non-starter." But the owner said, "As a form of entertainment, the preseason games are a challenge." Maske writes one possible solution is the NFL "could tie a reduced preseason to an expanded postseason." The owner said, "I'm not sure I'd be in favor of expanding the playoffs. How much do you expand them? Two teams? Four teams? There could be a case made for that, I suppose. (But) you’re going to have 8-8 teams making the playoffs on a fairly regular basis" (WASHINGTON POST, 8/29).